Section 88772 - Generally(a) The Rebuilding Nursing Infrastructure Grant Program is hereby established as a competitive grant program under the administration of the chancellor.(b) The funding for the program shall be awarded as grants by the chancellor to applicants for any one or combination of the following purposes: (1) Developing or expanding bachelor of science in nursing partnerships, including established partnerships with the California State University, the University of California, or independent institutions of higher education as defined in Section 66010.(2) Developing or expanding associate degree in nursing programs.(3) Developing strategies for recruiting, retaining, and training high-quality nursing faculty, including, but not limited to, by offering incentives, including stipends and flexible working hours, to recruit and retain nursing faculty, and by providing professional development opportunities.(4) Developing strategies for increasing nursing program credentials, including, but not limited to, efforts to address noncompliance issues raised by the Board of Registered Nursing and to obtain accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.(5) Developing strategies for engaging and retaining nursing students, including, but not limited to, the integration of high-impact and diversity-, equity-, and inclusion-focused curriculum, the development of apprenticeship opportunities, and the expansion of student support services including basic needs assistance, mental health support, case management, counseling services, and specialized tutoring.(6) Developing strategies that facilitate the increase of the percentage of associate degree nursing to bachelor of science in nursing students, including, but not limited to, the development of strategies that strengthen the high school to community college nursing pipeline.(7) Purchasing equipment for nursing education programs.(8) Developing or scaling efforts that lead to additional clinical placements for nursing students.(c) The chancellor shall develop an application for applicants to apply for a grant. The application may be an extension of the application used for the Nursing Enrollment Growth and Retention program under Section 78261. The chancellor shall make the application for the first round of grants available on or before November 1, 2024, with grants distributed to recipients on or before July 1, 2025. Subject to available funding for purposes of this part, the chancellor may administer subsequent application rounds. An application for a grant shall require, at a minimum, all of the following information: (1) A statement identifying the specific needs or problems the applicant faces with regard to providing access to educating, supporting, graduating, or placing nursing students.(2) A description of how the applicant is addressing the needs or problems described in paragraph (1) with existing funds, and how receipt of a grant will supplement those efforts.(3) The amount of a grant requested by an applicant, and how the applicant specifically proposes to use the grant for the purposes described in paragraphs (1) to (8), inclusive, of subdivision (b).(4) If applicable, the number of nursing education program slots that the applicant is planning to add each year within the two-year period of grant encumbrance described in subdivision (f) beyond already planned nursing education program slot expansions. A breakdown shall be provided for associate degree in nursing slots and bachelor of science in nursing slots.(5) If applicable, bachelor of science in nursing partnerships with a campus of the California State University or the University of California, or independent institutions of higher education as defined in Section 66010, that the applicant will develop or expand with receipt of a grant.(6) A breakdown of the amount and use of other funding sources that the applicant is using for nursing education programs, including apportionments, grants under the Nursing Enrollment Growth and Retention Program established in Section 78261, other state or federal workforce grants, and private or in-kind funding sources.(d) Selection of recipients shall be on a competitive basis. The chancellor shall develop a scoring rubric to evaluate the completeness and quality of each application. The chancellor shall require an application to meet a minimum threshold to be eligible for a grant.(1) The chancellor shall give priority for grants to applicants that are located in an underserved nursing area or a region with a local nursing shortage.(2) An applicant receiving a grant in one application round is not prohibited from applying and receiving a grant in subsequent application rounds. However, the chancellor may prioritize awarding grants to applicants that have not received a grant.(3) The chancellor shall give priority for a grant to applicants that expand existing bachelor of science in nursing partnerships with a campus of the California State University or the University of California.(e)(1) The chancellor shall determine the amount of a grant for each recipient. In determining the amount of a grant for a recipient, the chancellor shall take all of the following factors into account: (A) The applicant's requested grant amount in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c).(B) The applicant's score on the scoring rubric developed pursuant to subdivision (d).(C) The total amount of funding available for awarding grants.(2) A recipient shall not receive a grant that exceeds two million dollars ($2,000,000) per award cycle.(f) A recipient shall have up to two years to expend a grant. Any unspent amount of the grant at the end of that two-year period of encumbrance shall revert to the chancellor's office.(g) As a condition of receiving a grant, a recipient shall report, on or before January 1, 2026, and each January 1 thereafter to January 1, 2030, inclusive, all data and information to the chancellor's office that the chancellor determines furthers the purposes of the program. A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall include all of the following: (1) The number of additional nursing education program enrollment slots created with the use of grants.(2) Student outcomes, including course success rates, persistence rates, graduation rates, and, if possible, employment placement outcomes.(3) How the grant was used by expenditure category, as described in paragraphs (1) to (8), inclusive, of subdivision (b).(4) The extent to which the grant, combined with other funding sources, addressed regional workforce needs.(h) On or before July 1, 2026, and each July 1 thereafter to July 1, 2030, inclusive, the chancellor's office shall compile and provide a summary of the information received pursuant to subdivision (g) to the Assembly and Senate Committees on Budget and the Governor. The information shall be provided as part of the report required pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (h) of Section 78261. A report submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(i) The chancellor may allocate up to 5 percent of the total amount appropriated for purposes of the program for state administrative operations to carry out the intent of the program.Added by Stats 2024 ch 71 (SB 155),s 10, eff. 7/2/2024.